James Gunn Speaks out on Returning to Marvel for Guardians of the Galaxy 3

It’s been weird, wild, ride seeing James Gunn get fired from Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3, only to be rehired by Disney months later. Gunn has, in many ways, become a poster child of sorts for society’s ongoing dilemma with social media and how it should (or should not) affect a person’s life and career.

Now that Gunn is back on good footing, with both Guardians 3 and DC’s The Suicide Squad on his slate, we’re beginning to hear from the man himself. In a recent interview, the filmmaker offered some insight about his feeling regarding the whole firing and rehiring situation, and the prospect of now handling Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3.

Here’s what Gunn had to say to Deadline, regarding how it felt to be invited back to do Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 by Walt Disney Studios chief Alan Horn:

“I was about to sit down and talk about Suicide Squad with DC and I was excited about that. Alan asked me to come talk to him. I really believe he is a good man and I think he hired me back because he thought that was the right thing to do. I’ve known him a little, going back to the Scooby-Doo movies. I’ve always liked and admired him. I was touched by his compassion.

You hear in Hollywood that everybody’s cutthroat. That’s true of a section of this industry, but there’s also a lot of really good people. I’m always attracted to finding that goodness in places we don’t expect, often in the characters in my movies. I got a little bit teary-eyed in his office. And then I had to go tell Kevin Feige I had just decided to do Suicide Squad, so that made me very nervous.”

One can only imagine Feige, sitting in his office, counting his growing pile of gold, listening to Gunn’s good news/bad news drop. Pretty nerve-wracking, for sure.

In all seriousness though: there were so many fans that were absolutely *not* behind Disney’s decision to let Gunn go in the first place. The incident started when some politically-motivated trolls dug up decade-old tweets of the filmmaker making some “controversial” or “inappropriate” jokes (note the quotations), and called for Gunn to be axed. It wasn’t just ‘Outrage Culture’ at its worst, but also prime example of the darker ‘Dox Culture’ lurking out there on social media, using old or private information to launch new attacks against those they personally disagree with. Gunn’s rehiring has been a beacon of victory for those opposed to doxing threats, and the finally victory in this will hopefully be a kick-ass Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 that earns the most money and acclaim for the franchise.

Avengers: Endgame and Captain Marvel are now in theaters. Spider-Man: Far From Home hits theaters on July 2nd. Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3 is slated for release in 2021.

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